Ex. Doc. No. 41. 403 



friend noticed them, and as they passed, dismounted, stooped down, 

 and drew up his rifle; as the smoke burst forth from the muzzle of 

 his piece, we saw a fine buffalo cow lash her heels high in the air, 

 and then continued to jump and kick for a quarter of a mile or 

 more, when she fell and all the rest of the herd gathered around 

 her. We already had the meat of two fat cows, and as the wag- 

 ons were so far from the place where the cow had fallen, she was 

 left to feed the wolves. 



The ruts of the road were full of little lizards, sunning themselves; 

 as we approached they would dart briskly away, manifestly disin- 

 clined to play the part of devotees to Juggernaut. 



In crossing to the river we found the ground in many places co- 

 vered with beautiful gallardias (g. amblyodon) and the eupatorium, 

 while in the moist grounds we saw the curious dodder twining in 

 its golden tendrils all the plants that grew around it, forming an 

 inextricable entanglement. 



Among the birds, we saw many of the sky-larks and several avo- 

 sets (recuroirostra ames.) The tail and its coverts white, wings 

 black and white, legs blue, and bill recurved. 



When we first struck the river, we met with Major Clark's bat- 

 talion of artillery, a fine body of troops, well uniformed and of sol- 

 dierly bearing. 



Having marched a few miles along the river bank, we formed our 

 camp, after travelling this day a distance of 19 miles. 



Sunday, July 19th. — Marching along the Arkansas bottom one is 

 struck with the variety of swamp grasses. Here we find the trian- 

 gular grass, (scirpus triguctio,) and mingled with it in great abund- 

 ance the scouring rush (equisetum hyemale) and the beautiful lia- 

 tris (liatris spicata.) 



After we had started, I went back three miles to meet Gen. Kear- 

 ny in order to get some one to go with us and showusthe exact location 

 of the capture of the party of Texans by Capt. Cooke, 2d dragoons, 

 in 1843. General Kearny detailed Lieutenant Love, who showed 

 us the spot that we sought. On the south side of the river, there 

 is a large grove of cotton wood trees that extends some distance 

 along the river bank, and is the first grove of any size that the 

 travelle west meets after passing Pawnee fork, which, by the 

 route we came, is 64 miles distant. 



In the evening we went to General Kearny's camp to get some of 

 the horses shod. We had expected to have gone not more than 

 three or four miles, but only reached them after a ride of eight 

 miles, so deceived were we with regard to the distance by the pu- 

 rity of the atmosphere. As it was quite late, we concluded to re- 

 main here until the camp should overtake us in the morning. 



Monday, 20tk. — This morning we had not marched far when we saw 

 General Kearny's guard stop and encamp. Soon Lieutenant Emory, 

 who had crossed the river, rode over and informed us that Gen- 

 eral Kearny was very illj and ordered one of our wagons to remain 

 for the purpose of conveying the general on by easy stages; for 

 our wagon was light and had good springs, while all the other wa- 



